Fiat Chrysler's Canadian unit averts strike
DETROIT — A Canadian autoworkers union called Unifor reached a tentative agreement late Monday night with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, assuring uninterrupted production of Chrysler's big sedans.
The deal includes a commitment to invest in the automaker's assembly plant in Brampton, Ont., and provides its workers with their first raises in 10 years.
The deal was reached after several days of intense bargaining and, if ratified by workers, includes a $325 million investment in Brampton for a new paint shop and $6.4 million to upgrade the automaker's casting plant in Ebitocoke, Ont., in Canadian dollars. It also includes $12,000 in bonuses and lump sum payments to workers over the life of the agreement before taxes.
The contract represents the second win in two months for Unifor, which began negotiations this summer worried that three plants in Canada operated by the Detroit Three could close in the coming years. For FCA, the tentative deal averts a possible strike that would have shut down its Windsor Assembly Plant where it builds the popular new Chrysler Pacifica minivan.
Fiat Chrysler, in a statement, confirmed that it reached an agreement with Unifor but declined to make any additional comment.
"We were really deeply concerned about the fact that the paint shop at Brampton … is over 30 years old," Unifor President Jerry Dias said at a press conference in Toronto. "Now, they are going to gut the existing paint shop and refurbish it."
Dias also said Fiat Chrysler would provide a new platform for the plant in Brampton if quality continues to improve but declined to clarify what that meant. FCA builds the Chrysler 300, Dodge Charger and Dodge Challenger at the plant on a platform that hasn't been overhauled in more than a decade.
The agreement will not be official until union members vote on the deal next week. After that, Unifor will turn its attention to Ford. The union has set a deadline of Oct. 31 to complete discussions with the Dearborn automaker.
Leaders of the Canadian union said negotiations with FCA went down to the wire and were completed only after overcoming a major hurdle. FCA, Dias said, was reluctant to provide the same level of wage increases that General Motors agreed to in a contract ratified last month by Unifor members.